1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus, an image processing method, a program, and a recording medium.
2. Description of the Related Art
Blurry images are often captured owing to camera shake caused by a photographer's hand when capturing a moving image. Image stabilization techniques for stabilizing these blurry images are classified into two types, that is, (1) image stabilization performed when capturing a moving image, and (2) image stabilization performed as post-processing.
The above-mentioned image stabilization performed when capturing an image (1) is stabilization performed when moving images are captured with the use of a video camera, and stabilizing means is embedded in the video camera. On the other hand, image stabilization performed as post-processing (2) is stabilization performed when editing an image after capturing of a moving image, and stabilizing means is installed, for example, in software used for editing of moving images or the like.
“Motion detection” techniques for detecting the motion of a camera when capturing an image for image stabilization are classified into two types, that is, an “electronic detecting method” and a “physical quantity detecting method”. The electronic detecting method detects the motion of a video camera when capturing an image by detecting motion vectors through performing signal processing on images. On the other hand, the physical quantity detecting method directly detects the motion of a camera when capturing an image using physical quantity sensors mounted on the camera. The electronic detecting method can be realized by compact and lightweight electronic circuits, which leads to reduction of the price of the video camera, while the electronic detecting method has a disadvantage in that it may induce detection errors more often than the physical quantity detecting method. The physical quantity detecting method has an advantage in that it can more effectively prevent detection errors from occurring than the electronic detecting method, while its electronic circuits becomes large owing to the physical quantity sensors, which leads to an increase in the price of the video camera.
Either the electronic detecting method or the physical quantity detecting method is employed for the image stabilization (1) performed when capturing an image. An image stabilization employing the physical quantity detecting method can provide image stabilization of high quality, but the electronic detecting method is often employed for image stabilization of a low-priced video camera. Only the electronic detecting method is employed as a motion detection method for the image stabilization (2) performed as post-processing. It is difficult to use the physical quantity detecting method because with the physical quantity detecting method there may be trouble in obtaining detected values of the physical quantity sensors.
Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2008-78808 is disclosed in regard to the related art.